Ergonomic baby carriers

An ergonomic baby carrier should distribute the child’s weight evenly and comfortably for the wearer while giving good support to the child. Ergonomic baby carriers are more advanced, with extra functions and settings, which tend to make them more expensive than simpler models. On the other hand, an ergonomic baby carrier allows you to carry for longer sessions and well into the toddler years.

Ergonomics for you

An ergonomic baby carrier needs to distribute the child’s weight evenly across the wearer’s shoulders, back and hips. The baby carrier should have sufficiently wide, padded shoulder straps and a wide, padded waist belt in order to distribute the child’s weight across a greater area. To make sure that your baby carrier is as comfortable as possible for you, it’s important that it’s properly adjusted for your body. Please take the time to study your Owner’s Manual to learn how to adjust your baby carrier. It can make a huge difference!

Padded shoulder straps and a waist belt are essential for carrying a larger child for longer sessions in the baby carrier.

7 tips for more comfortable carrying

Shoulder straps and waist belt
Padded shoulder straps and a waist belt are essential for carrying a larger child for longer sessions in the baby carrier.

Wide-leg position
A wide-leg position for the child distributes the child’s weight across a larger part of the waist belt.

Properly adjusted
Make sure the baby carrier is properly adjusted for your body. You will find information about how to adjust your specific baby carrier in the Owner’s Manual.

Vary the centre of gravity
Are your shoulders getting tired? Loosen the shoulder straps to transfer more of the weight to your hips.

Vary the carrying position
Vary between carrying your child against your chest and on your back.

The child’s position
Make sure the child is sitting straight in the baby carrier and not leaning to one side. Check in a mirror!

Carry close
The closer your baby is to your body, the closer your baby’s centre of gravity is to yours, which makes carrying even more comfortable.

Hip-healthy baby carriers
People sometimes ask us if carrying a baby in a baby carrier can damage the their hips. There is no need to worry about this when you use a baby carrier from BABYBJÖRN. It is impossible for a baby carrier to cause problems such as hip dysplasia. The International Hip Dysplasia Institute has tested our ergonomic baby carriers One and We and acknowledges them to be “hip-healthy” baby carriers.

Ergonomics for your baby

When you carry your child in a baby carrier, the baby’s hips, legs and spine are in the same position as when you hold your baby in your arms. The most important considerations when it comes to the child’s position in the baby carrier is that the baby should be sitting in an upright position to ensure free air passages and there should be good support for the child’s neck. A newborn baby sits in what’s known as the frog position, with a curved back and their knees level with or higher than their bottom. Babies sit in this frog position in all baby carriers from BABYBJÖRN, but our ergonomic baby carriers keep larger babies in this comfortable position as well.

Back development

A newborn baby’s back is C-shaped at first and gradually becomes S-shaped as they mature. The baby carrier needs to give good support to the baby’s back throughout this development process. You don’t need to worry that your baby’s back is held in an unnaturally straight position in the baby carrier. Baby carriers from BABYBJÖRN are designed to hold the newborn baby’s back gently curved (the C curve). To ensure the baby is sitting in a good position in the baby carrier, you can put your hands under the baby’s knees and gently tilt their hips to give them a deeper sitting position. Our baby carriers also allow the baby to sit more upright as their spine becomes more S-shaped.

You don’t need to worry that your baby’s back is held in an unnaturally straight position in the baby carrier.

Hip development

An ergonomic baby carrier has a wider leg position and gives greater support to the baby’s legs to keep their knees level with their bottom. The baby carrier should only support the legs as far as the backs of the knees and the baby should be able to move their lower legs freely. As the baby grows, the support will no longer reach to the backs of their knees, but don’t worry – it’s still providing good support to the baby’s hips.

The skeletal tissue surrounding a newborn baby’s hips is still soft. This makes it important for a baby to sit in a natural, wide-leg position during their first months. All baby carriers from BABYBJÖRN provide good support to a newborn baby’s hips from day one. Our Baby Carrier One and One Air have a wide seat area for larger infants as well. This is comfortable for both you and your child!